quote:Originally posted by Unregistered Being told that the HL broom passed but not seeing the results of testing is not lying...

And BP saying BlackHeads were just to prove a point but selling them 9 months later is!

Unregistered

Being told that the HL broom passed but not seeing the results of testing is not lying...

Unregistered

quote:Originally posted by Itsjustagame

Curlky. You are right when you say that two people can analyze the same information in different ways. That being said, here is my take on what I saw last year.

After three years of using the IcePad and once the season was well underway, HL teams were being called cheaters(coincidently they were winning...)and bullied. This charge was led by BP teams making personal phone calls to have HL banned. The infamous agreement amongst elite curler was written by BP and GL players. It was said that HL IcePad had directional fabric, that they were the problem. Like any new company that has limited cash flows, HL had to come up with a new fabric and take the loss.

On the other side, we have other manufacturers who have financial ties with the curling authorities. How convenient! BP came out with super abrasive Blackhead pads, apparently to prove a point... but they are still selling it. Apparently, false accusations and corporate bullying were not enough.

Now, everyone will have to use the same fabric and pay up a fee to the WCF to do so. I am ready to bet the house that this fee will favor companies such as BP and GL comparatively to HL.

This is a free country so you can buy your equipment from who ever you want. If you are going to come out with a statement on how badly HL handled the broomgate, go ahead and explain. I have.

Just saw this now, and I have stated much of this before. My quick response is this. I thought that Archie lied. He tried to say that he submitted brooms for testing and that they passed all of the testing. However, he then went on to say that CCA never actually gave him any results. You cannot argue both ways, that it did pass, and that they never told you the results. I dont care for liars, no need for them. Further, I thought Archie tried to make his problems my problems. I don't care if his company loses money because a fabric he invested in got outlawed. HL never did anything for me, so I had no reason to feel compassion for them, so as he tried to win me to his side I was turned off. Maybe BP bullied them, maybe they didnt, we can haev that discussion over a beer, but quite frankly I dont care. I didnt like that he lied, I felt he was whiny, and I felt like he was trying to make his problems my problems and draw sympathy from that. Maybe none of these are good reasons to root against them, but HL will never see a dime of my money in the future

youngen

quote:Originally posted by Miz5508 Well since the spammer brought this thread back, I assume you all saw this??

Best looking shoes that I've seen, other than custom installs (with RDS, nicer than the BP slider footprint IMO)

#BuckFalancePlus

These shoes look very similar to the Nike Metcon 2 trainers that BJ Neufeld and the Harnden Bro's had made into custom shoes last season. Coincidence...?

I'm not sure I can avoid buying a pair of these for next season!

Unregistered

quote:Originally posted by guido Nice shoes...... if you're a clown.

Hard to believe you'd say that being from Manitoba.....home of Asham.

Itsjustagame

quote:Originally posted by curlky

As a matter of opinion, I take the same behavior from HL, and have vowed to never buy or use one of their product based upon how they handled the broomgate. I always find it funny how the same information can lead to such vastly different outcomes.

Curlky. You are right when you say that two people can analyze the same information in different ways. That being said, here is my take on what I saw last year.

After three years of using the IcePad and once the season was well underway, HL teams were being called cheaters(coincidently they were winning...)and bullied. This charge was led by BP teams making personal phone calls to have HL banned. The infamous agreement amongst elite curler was written by BP and GL players. It was said that HL IcePad had directional fabric, that they were the problem. Like any new company that has limited cash flows, HL had to come up with a new fabric and take the loss.

On the other side, we have other manufacturers who have financial ties with the curling authorities. How convenient! BP came out with super abrasive Blackhead pads, apparently to prove a point... but they are still selling it. Apparently, false accusations and corporate bullying were not enough.

Now, everyone will have to use the same fabric and pay up a fee to the WCF to do so. I am ready to bet the house that this fee will favor companies such as BP and GL comparatively to HL.

This is a free country so you can buy your equipment from who ever you want. If you are going to come out with a statement on how badly HL handled the broomgate, go ahead and explain. I have.

curlky

quote:Originally posted by Itsjustagame

With the way they handled the broomgate, the BlackHeads and the bullying of HL and their teams, I prefer looking like a clown than to ever buy a BP product again.

As a matter of opinion, I take the same behavior from HL, and have vowed to never buy or use one of their product based upon how they handled the broomgate. I always find it funny how the same information can lead to such vastly different outcomes.

Itsjustagame

quote:Originally posted by guido Nice shoes...... if you're a clown.

With the way they handled the broomgate, the BlackHeads and the bullying of HL and their teams, I prefer looking like a clown than to ever buy a BP product again.

guido

Nice shoes...... if you're a clown.

Unregistered

quote:Originally posted by Miz5508 Well since the spammer brought this thread back, I assume you all saw this??

Best looking shoes that I've seen, other than custom installs (with RDS, nicer than the BP slider footprint IMO)

#BuckFalancePlus

lolar3288

My foot and slide are much like yours and I have a problem finding the right shoe. As well, I curl up to 5 times a week plus spiels and I am hard on shoes. Balance Plus makes the best and fastest sliders as far as I am concerned. I used the Balance plus 500's for three years. Best fit and comfort but I was wearing out a pair a year (split the sole). If you don't curl as much as I do then I would suggest you try the 500's

This year I bought a pair of Ashrams(sp?) and replaced the front donut slider with a modified 1/4 Balance Plus 500 slider. It works find but the shoes have a slant on the heel which you have to be careful of (I have fallen a few times sweeping) and now, at the end of the season I see the Velcro starting to separate from the sole. Also, there is not much padding in the sole for sweeping.

I tried the top line Goldline last year (not the one with the disc pads) but I found the slider slow so I sold the shoes after four games. Anyone that has the new Goldline shoes with the discs have had problems with the discs popping out.

There are two ways to make sheet Teflon. One is pressure molded and one is molded without pressure. The pressure molded one is much more dense and faster. That is what Balance Plus uses.

Hope this helps...

Unregistered

What did you use to cut/shape the Teflon? Thanks!

quote:Originally posted by linz To update I ended up just buying a 1/4 inch velcro on slider from the local club shop, cut the velcro off and then cut the the slider into a couple of pieces and used some two part epoxy to glue the now split slider onto the bottom of a comfy and flexible shoe I had lying around. Then I shaped the pieces of teflon to be flush with my shoe. It looks like it'll be good, but unfortunately I'll have no way of knowing for sure how well the shoes will work until I play in a summerspeil in a couple of months here.

If nothing else though it sure was a lot cheaper than forking out 200-300$ for a 'real' curling shoe. The slider did still cost ~80$ though, which seems outrageous for a little piece of plastic, but luckily I had a 100$ gift certificate at the pro shop from a spiel, so it feels like the shoes were essentially free.

murphyj87

One guy I knew used broomball shoes, and attached a slider to the left foot. He never could (at least in the 1970s)find size 13 curling shoes, but could find size 13 broomball shoes.

In the old days, 1960s, we couldn't get real sliders, so we cut out shoe sized pieces of Arbourite and cemented those to our shoes as sliders.

Once we could get real slider material, in the 1970s, it came in rectangular sheets, and I found a shoe maker who cut it, cemented it on, and trimmed it, and that lasted for almost a decade.

icemnnjack

quote:Originally posted by linz To update I ended up just buying a 1/4 inch velcro on slider from the local club shop, cut the velcro off and then cut the the slider into a couple of pieces and used some two part epoxy to glue the now split slider onto the bottom of a comfy and flexible shoe I had lying around. Then I shaped the pieces of teflon to be flush with my shoe. It looks like it'll be good, but unfortunately I'll have no way of knowing for sure how well the shoes will work until I play in a summerspeil in a couple of months here.

If nothing else though it sure was a lot cheaper than forking out 200-300$ for a 'real' curling shoe. The slider did still cost ~80$ though, which seems outrageous for a little piece of plastic, but luckily I had a 100$ gift certificate at the pro shop from a spiel, so it feels like the shoes were essentially free.

Kinda funny about the teflon price as i purchase a sq. Ft. From goldline or olsens for about 70$ and it does 3 shoes
Good idea though good luck

linz

quote:Originally posted by CaptMorgan

Youíll have a problem with epoxy. It is not flexible and will not hold very long. Contact cement is more flexible or Shoe Goo works well too.

It should be fine, I don't have the package on me right now to tell you exactly what it was (I think it was a jb weld product) but it is the same stuff I used to make my first pair of shoes, and they held together fine, although you're right about the flexibility. That shouldn't be an issue though as I split the slider, and left a little bit of the back part of the front slider unglued, so it looks something like the picture below.

quote:Originally posted by linz and used some two part epoxy to glue the now split slider onto the bottom of a comfy and flexible shoe I had lying around.

Youíll have a problem with epoxy. It is not flexible and will not hold very long. Contact cement is more flexible or Shoe Goo works well too.

linz

To update I ended up just buying a 1/4 inch velcro on slider from the local club shop, cut the velcro off and then cut the the slider into a couple of pieces and used some two part epoxy to glue the now split slider onto the bottom of a comfy and flexible shoe I had lying around. Then I shaped the pieces of teflon to be flush with my shoe. It looks like it'll be good, but unfortunately I'll have no way of knowing for sure how well the shoes will work until I play in a summerspeil in a couple of months here.

If nothing else though it sure was a lot cheaper than forking out 200-300$ for a 'real' curling shoe. The slider did still cost ~80$ though, which seems outrageous for a little piece of plastic, but luckily I had a 100$ gift certificate at the pro shop from a spiel, so it feels like the shoes were essentially free.

Unregistered

Balance Plus Delux.

most consistent game to game
most consistent end to end

performance performance performance
quality

this shoe has had a lengthy life without major alteration - for a reason - its built to last, built to perform. best value per game on the market.

get fitted by a retail professional
enjoy many years in your Delux!

Mr. Jordan

I'm looking for new shoes for next season, and I'm having a little trouble deciding.

I have a flat-foot delivery. I had the previous version of the Ultima Athletic shoes, and for the past two years I usually played three nights a week in season. Those shoes, however, didn't feel very "athletic" while sweeping--they're big and clunky, and I put some wear and tear on the insteps of my shoes.

I suppose that shoe has an 8-speed slider, so I'd probably want to get the same speed or perhaps something just a little faster. I'd really love a lighter shoe.

Right now, I'm trying to decide between the Balance Plus 200 Series with a 3/16" slider, or the Goldline Podium Silver with the 5/32" slider. I don't think I need a Ferrari on my sliding foot just yet. At the relative value of those shoes, would I be even better off passing on those and getting a custom-made shoe? Or is there a different option than the ones I mentioned that I'm overlooking?

Skipman

Go with a 3/16 to a 1/4 inch split slider: Options for a more narrow foot and somewhat tuck delivery are:
Tournament Sports (Ultima) CS6000 - great leather around $200
Balance Plus 500 around $210 to $240
Goldline Podium Gold around $240

Try the Tournament first

Duck

I used court shoes made by Bernice for many years and in fact went far too long with them. I just recently purchased the Goldline Podium Gold and absolutely love them. The stability on the sliding foot is way better than my old court shoes (although again that may be because I should have replaced them 2-3 years ago).

Good luck with your search.

Duck

Unregistered

I have narrow feet as well and I use Adidas custom shoes (I agree with creating your own shoe, the majority of the time it can be cheaper, and it's a show you know you like). Adidas normally have a more narrow fit.
Since you slide up on your toe, getting a split slider would be best, or if you prefer balance plus, you have the "island" option which puts two rounded sliders at the front and back, leaving the middle open.

That's just my two cents, I am sure others have had great use out of traditional curling shoes as well.

sheila hills

Get a nice pair of running shoes and put a slider and gripper on them. Court shoes work best. Bernice at the Calgary Curling Club did my Pumas for me. Totally professional job. 1/4 inch slider and Goldline gripper was $150 installed and the shoes were $100. $250 got me a curling shoe that blows away anything the curling companies make. Comfy and warm. No break in.

linz

Hi there,

I'm looking for a good pair of curling shoes that anyone could recommend for someone looking to play at a high level.
A couple things about my feet/slide:

-My feet are pretty narrow

-I have quite a lousy pair of shoes right now as far as insulation, but I rarely get cold feet, so insulation doesn't need to be a consideration

-I get up on my toes during my slide, although it isn't exactly a tuck per se, more of a half-tuck or something like that, so some flexibility in the middle of the shoe would be handy

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